If you're not yet aware of what is going on with Bitcoin today, check out some of this info. On Friday, Bitcoin climbed to yet another all-time high, hitting a stunning $5,856.10. That means that if it were a stock (which it isn't), it would have a market cap of $96.7 billion. That's bigger than financial giants Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS). If it were a Nasdaq-listed company, there would only be 14 companies with a bigger market cap.
That's how popular the cryptocurrency and digital payment system has become before it has reached its ninth birthday.
The explosive growth has caught the eye of MX Gold (TSX-V:MXL)(OTCQX:MXLGF), a Vancouver-based junior mining company with exploration projects in Mexico and British Columbia. Perhaps a bit of an odd bedfellow, MX Gold is assessing its first foray outside mineral exploration into digital currency technology to decide if further investment is warranted.
To that point, MX Gold on Friday disclosed signing a letter of intent to acquire Symple Internet Financial Ltd., a privately-held Manitoba-based company focused on cryptocurrency/blockchain mining. Blockchain miners are involved in adding transaction records to a cryptocurrency's public ledger.
MX Gold says that the acquisition does not mean the company is undergoing a change in business.
Per the terms of the acquisition, MX Gold would pay $150,000 and issue 4.5 million shares of stock, as well as enter a consulting agreement with Symple's principal shareholder at a salary of $96,000 per year, with a guarantee of 12 months of compensation. MX Gold last month completed a $4 million round of financing. Investors will know more in coming weeks about MX Gold moving forward, as a definitive agreement is expected by the first of November. Shares of MXL hit their highest level since February on the news, rising as high as 20 cents in Friday morning trading from Thursday's closing price of 16.5 cents. At 11:15 AM ET, the Toronto-listed shares are holding at 18.5 cents for a gain of 12.12% so far on the day.
